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Top-ranked North Carolina takes on ACC rival N.C. State

Jan 12, 2008 - 1:53 PM NC State (11-3) at No. 1 North Carolina (16-0) 12:00 pm EST

CHAPEL HILL, North Carolina (Ticker) -- The last time top-ranked North Carolina won its first 17 games back in the 1997-98 season, it went to the Final Four.

The top-ranked Tar Heels look to remain unbeaten Saturday when they face North Carolina State in an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup.

North Carolina has won eight of the last nine meetings from NC State.

In their last non-conference game of the season, the Tar Heels (16-0, 1-0 ACC) posted a 93-81 win over UNC-Asheville on Wednesday. North Carolina opened ACC play on Sunday with a 90-88 overtime win at Clemson.

The Tar Heels are led by junior forward Tyler Hansbrough, who leads the conference in scoring and rebounding, averaging 21.8 points and 9.8 rebounds. North Carolina is No. 2 nationally in scoring at 92.1 points per game.

Sophomore guard Wayne Ellington, whose 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left in overtime beat the Tigers, averages 18.1 points for the Tar Heels.

North Carolina State (11-3, 0-0) has clamped down on defense during its current seven-game winning streak, holding opponents to 56.9 points and 29.2 percent shooting. The Wolfpack have outscored their opponents by 100 points from the free-throw line in the run.

Freshman center J.J. Hickson leads North Carolina State and all ACC rookies in scoring at 16.5 points per game. Hickson also is the Pack's leading rebounder at 7.7 per game.